Apple Macs' immunity to malware is a myth - Kaspersky Lab

One of the things that is in favor of Apple in the endless PC vs Mac debate is that Macs are supposedly much more less prone to viruses and other baddies as compared to their counterparts from Microsoft. However, the recent Flashback attack has told us that even Mac owners are now malware targets. Fact is, even Kaspersky Lab is saying that Macs are far from invulnerable to attacks.

According to the Internet security firm, Mac users can expect "more drive-by downloads, more Mac OS X mass-malware, and more cross-platform exploit kits with Mac-specific exploits." One of the main reasons for this is that the total market share enjoyed by Apple's popular computer system has reached a level where it is now a primary target for cybercriminals, a fact that is not lost, as we've said, on the Flashback issue. In case you didn't know, Flashback is a malware that spread to about 700,000 Macs worldwide earlier this month. It takes advantage of a reported Java vulnerability and has been so far used to hijack search results although those behind it can control an infected Mac in other ways.

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Fortunately, Apple has now announced Gatekeeper for OS X 10.8 Mountain Lion which aims to make Macs safer from downloaded malware. It's bound to be available in the next few months. However, seeing that malware attacks on Macs could potentially significantly increase in number in the near future, we recommend users to also do some of the things their buds on Windows do, like downloading antivirus software to make sure their rigs remain squeaky clean.